Hailey Welch, the social media personality known as the 'Hawk Tuah girl,' says the collapse of the HAWK memecoin she promoted in 2024 left her traumatized. She told Channel 5’s Andrew Callaghan she was misled into endorsing a project she didn’t understand.
Welch cooperated with an FBI investigation in 2025 that cleared her of wrongdoing. She stated she never received funds from the token launch and lacked the technical knowledge to create it.
The HAWK memecoin briefly hit a $490 million market cap in December 2024 but crashed over 91% within a day. It's now widely seen as a rug pull.
Her lawyer estimated investor losses at around $200,000. Welch said she received death threats and withdrew from public life for months.
Onchain investigator ZachXBT criticized her, saying crypto communities warned her against launching the coin and she later blamed partners before vanishing.
A lawsuit was filed in December 2024 against the creators and managers of the token-but not Welch-alleging unregistered securities sales.